This application claims priority to and the benefit of NL1016638 filed Nov. 17, 2000.
The present invention relates in its entirety to the feeding of poultry, such as chickens, turkeys etc., with feed that is substantially in powder form or granule form or the like, said birds in principle being able to run free in large poultry houses. Such poultry houses typically have dimensions of the order of 100 mxc3x9718 m.
Although in the case of feed systems for poultry there are differences depending on the type of birds for which the systems are intended, for example chickens or turkeys, and for example table chickens or mother chickens, there are also similarities. The present invention relates to an aspect of the distribution systems that is present in all such feed systems, namely their geometry.
These birds are fed with feed that is in powder form or granule form or the like. The feed systems have in common the fact that fixed feed dispensing points are present in the poultry house, and that the feed to be dispensed has to be conveyed from a central storage place to said feed dispensing points. For the conveyance of the feed to be dispensed from a central storage place to the feed dispensing points, a pipe conveyor system is present, which pipe conveyor system comprises one or more substantially horizontally directed feed conveyor pipes, which are disposed substantially parallel to each other, and which feed conveyor pipes are provided with means for conveying feed through them.
The feed distribution points are situated along the abovementioned feed conveyor pipes, and in general have regular distances between them. Said regular distances between successive feed points of one feed conveyor pipe are generally shorter than the distances between feed conveyor pipes situated next to each other.
In this way the feed points normally define a regular grid pattern on the floor of the poultry house, which grid pattern is composed of rectangular cells whose corner points are defined by the feed points.
A feed dispenser is disposed at each feed point. A feed dispenser in its entirety comprises a tray on which feed comes to rest, which feed can be pecked off said tray by the birds, and also guide means for guiding a part of the feed out of the horizontal feed conveyor pipe and into the tray of the dispenser. Said guide means comprise in general a suitably dimensioned, substantially vertically oriented down pipe, the top end of which is connected to an outlet of the feed conveyor pipe, and the bottom end of which is situated above a central part of said tray. The down pipe is connected to the feed conveyor pipe by means of a connecting piece, and the tray is also connected to said connecting piece by means of arms. More particularly, the tray, the down pipe, the connecting piece and the arms form a modular unit that can be attached as a whole to a feed conveyor pipe.
In this way, during use feed is conveyed into the tray, which feed is pecked out of said tray by the birds. In order to do so, the birds stand in a circle around the tray.
Since the birds have a beak that is relatively small in relation to their body, the dispenser tray could theoretically have very small dimensions, so that said dispenser trays could be regarded as pointed in relation to the surface area of the poultry house. However, for physical reasons that will be clear to persons skilled in the art, the down pipe must have a certain minimum diameter in order to ensure unimpeded feed conveyance, and the dimensions of the tray must be at least greater than those of the down pipe, in order to ensure that the tray receives feed flowing out of the down pipe. In addition, the horizontal dimensions selected for the tray must be so much greater than the diameter of the down pipe that it is ensured that each tray has a feed presentation section which is situated, at least in vertical projection, on the floor surface next to the down pipe, in order to ensure in this way that the birds can move their heads above the feed without being obstructed. All this means that the tray has certain minimum dimensions and consequently takes up a finite part of the surface area of the floor of the poultry house.
The term xe2x80x9cshapexe2x80x9d of the dispenser tray will be used below to convey the contour of the vertical projection of said dispenser tray on the floor of the poultry house, from the normal position of the dispenser when in use. In addition, the term xe2x80x9csurface areaxe2x80x9d of the dispenser tray will be used below to convey the surface of said projected shape, and the term xe2x80x9ccircumferencexe2x80x9d will be used to convey the circumference of said projected shape. Dispenser trays nowadays are almost always a circular shape.
As stated above, the birds crowd in a circle around the dispenser trays while they are feeding. The distances between successive dispenser trays of one feed conveyor pipe are then selected so that they are at least large enough to ensure that the birds standing around said adjacent dispenser trays do not obstruct each other. In the case of chickens, for example, said distance from edge to edge typically lies in the region of 40 cm.
Thus the minimum distance between the successive feed points along a feed conveyor line is determined by the size of the birds, on the one hand, and the diameter of the dispenser trays, on the other hand. With a typical tray diameter of approximately 35 cm, this leads to a minimum distance of 75 cm (centre to centre) between the successive feed points. This distance between feed points, also indicated below by the term xe2x80x9cdispenser pitchxe2x80x9d is the determining factor for the maximum number of feed points that can be provided along the length of the feed conveyor pipe, in other words the length of the poultry house concerned.
It will also be clear that each dispenser tray can provide only a limited number of birds with feed simultaneously. Said number corresponds to the number of birds in a circle around the dispenser tray if the birds are standing shoulder to shoulder. That number is typically of the order of 10 to 20. All this means a limit to the total number of birds that can be housed in a particular poultry house.
The number of birds that can be fed in the poultry house could be increased by reducing the dispenser pitch of the successive feed points along the feed conveyor pipes, since this means that more feed points can be provided in the poultry house. It would, however, mean a reduction of the distances between the individual successive dispenser trays, and that means that the birds would be obstructed in their freedom to move around in the poultry house.
As an alternative, the number of birds that can be fed in the poultry house could be increased by increasing the diameter of the pans, thereby also lengthening the circumference and making it possible for more birds to stand in the circle around the dispenser tray. However, the effect of this would only be limited, because the pitch of the dispensers would then also have to be increased. Moreover, the birds would then no longer be able to peck up the feed lying far away from the edge, which would mean a reduction of the economic efficiency of the dispensers. Furthermore, a larger dispenser tray inevitably means the use of more material, and thus higher costs.
Broadly speaking, the fact is that the total number of birds that can be housed and fed in a poultry house is proportional to the total length of the circumferences of all dispenser trays set up in the poultry house. In the case of the current designs the basic idea was that each bird had to have as much feed as possible at its disposal, and therefore that the ratio of tray surface area to tray circumference had to be as great as possible. This consideration led to the current designs in which the tray is circular; it is a known fact that the circle is an arithmetical figure with the greatest possible ratio of surface to circumference. However, the feeding surface taken up in the poultry house by the dispenser trays means a restriction of the space that the birds have to move around. The free living space for the birds can be defined as the total surface area of the poultry house minus the total surface area taken up by the dispenser trays. The more surface area taken up by the dispenser trays, the less living space will be left over for the birds.
A feed dispenser according to the preamble of claim 1 is known, for example from FR-A-2,680,949, which discloses a feed dispenser with an elongate, rectangular dispenser tray. The feed dispenser further comprises a down pipe, the bottom end edge of which is also an elongate, rectangular shape.
A disadvantage in this case is that the living and feeding surface areas available in a poultry house are still limited. The birds stand with the broadest parts of their bodies, i.e. their shoulders, against each other along the straight circumferential edge areas of the dispenser tray while they are feeding. The total available length at the circumferential edge of the dispenser tray is utilized inefficiently as a result of this. While the birds are feeding their heads are positioned at relatively great distances from each other, distances corresponding to the breadths of the shoulders of the birds.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved feed dispenser in which the abovementioned problems are reduced or even eliminated.
The present invention is based on a totally different design idea. Instead of the idea of offering as much feed as possible per bird, the present invention is based on the idea of admitting as many birds as possible to the feed, whilst still ensuring that each bird receives sufficient feed. The present invention aims to provide a feed distribution system that is improved compared with known feed distribution systems by having improved efficiency and improved animal-friendliness. More particularly, the present invention aims to provide a feed distribution system that with a certain available poultry house surface area is capable of feeding greater numbers of birds and at the same time guaranteeing those birds more exercise space.
In order to ensure that a large number of birds can be provided with feed in the poultry house, a relatively great total length of the circumferences of all dispenser trays must be selected. In order to make the exercise space available for the birds as great as possible, the floor surface area taken up by the dispenser trays must be as small as possible. In complete contrast to the current designs, these apparently conflicting considerations lead to the design criterion that the ratio of tray circumference to tray surface area must be great.
Based on these design criteria, the present invention provides an improved feed dispenser according to claim 1. According to the present inventive idea, the dispenser tray has areas where the circumferential edge has a relatively large radius of curvature and areas where the circumferential edge has a relatively small radius of curvature. The curved circumferential edge areas with differing radii of curvature advantageously make it possible to make efficient use of the space available in a poultry house. The living and feeding surface areas for the birds can consequently be optimised. The birds standing beside each other along the curved circumferential edge areas of the dispenser tray while they are feeding are positioned with their heads at distances from each other that are smaller than their shoulder breadths, while the abovementioned disadvantages of circular dispenser trays are overcome.
In a distribution system according to the present invention the successive dispensers are preferably disposed in such a way that the abovementioned edge parts of adjacent dispenser trays with relatively large radius of curvature are directed substantially parallel to each other, the common direction being able to form an angle with the longitudinal direction of the feed conveyor pipes. Said angle is preferably equal to 90xc2x0, but it can also have another value. In a certain preferred embodiment the shape of the dispenser tray is elongate. In a feed distribution system such an elongate dispenser tray is then preferably disposed in such a way that the longitudinal direction of each dispenser tray is directed substantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the feed conveyor pipes.
Further preferred embodiments of the feed dispenser and of a feed distribution system comprising such a feed dispenser are set out in the subclaims.
These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be explained in greater detail by the description that follows of preferred embodiments of a feed dispenser and feed distribution system according to the invention with reference to the drawing, in which identical reference numerals indicate identical or comparable components, and in which: